Unexpected and unwanted?
by cookiemunster
Summary: Update! New chapter! Yay! The truth comes out about Bria....
1. Chapter 1

**Hi, frist fic, be nice to me!Seriously no flames.**

**Discaimer: Don't own Star Wars. If I did I would live in a massive gold house! **

**Summary: Someone _very_ unexpected arrives at Yavin... oooooo!**

* * *

Chapter One

'I can't believe you came back!' said the Princess smiling at Han Solo.

Solo feels happy if a little uncomfortable. These Rebels were very……. jolly, for want of a better word. Still attention from Princess Leia was very much appreciated.

'Well, you know, couldn't let the kid get all the glory' he said and then gave her a lopsided smile.

By 'kid' he meant Luke Skywalker who had just destroyed the Death Star, the Imperial super weapon, which had been used to destroy the young Princess' planet, Alderaan.

Solo and the Princess were a little way away from the main group of revellers, in which Luke Skywalker was being congratulated and thanked and plied with drink.

'_Poor kid_; thought Han, _his head is gonna hurt tomorrow.'_

Still Luke looked happy enough being the centre of attention. It was something that the young farmer had not had a lot of experience of. He was no longer 'Wormy'. No, he was Luke Skywalker, rescuer of Princess Leia, destroyer of the Death Star, Jedi in training.

But for one night he was going to be a kid and get legless with his new mates and celebrate their victory. After all, he had never really drunk alcohol before. And everyone says you have to have lots of new and varied experiences in life.

'I have a feeling he is going to pass out after a glass of Correlian Ale.' quipped Leia wryly to Han. They had been watching Luke as Wedge Antilles explained the basic rules of a drinking game. The rule was: 'Drink all you can in two minutes. Loser is the one who can still see'

'Nah' don't think so'; said Han, 'half a glass max.'

Leia smiled at Han. She realised she was enjoying the handsome Correlian's company more than she expected. When he had left that day she expected never to see him, his ugly ship or his kindly Wookiee co-pilot again.

But then, when three TIE fighters were on Luke's tale as he had nearly made it to the power core, and all looked lost, there was Han, Chewie and the Falcon. Two of the TIEs were destroyed and the other went spiralling off into space, leaving Luke open to make the shot that destroyed the Death Star.

She had to ask him.

'Han, why did you…' but she was cut short by a young woman who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

'Oh my Gods! Han! It's me!' said the woman.

Han turned to look at the woman.

'Bria?'

* * *

**Suspense! Please Reveiew. I'm very lonely!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer with First Chapter.**

**First of all:**

**owpheonix :Wow I got a review! And you didn't even mention my dodgy tense thing going on! Thank you! It is a really nice first review and I shall keep it forever. (Or until my hotmail account expires, whichever comes first!)**

**cookiemunster xoxox**

**So onwards we go!

* * *

**

'What are we going to do?' asked Wedge looking at Wes and Hobby for some sort of answer.

They didn't elicit one. Both just looked back at him with looks of complete incredulity on their faces.

The party that had been arranged by the Rebels had gone on long into the night. But now it was early morning and most of the partygoers had shambled or staggered or crawled back to their (or someone else's) quarters.

The three remaining men, Wedge, Wes and Hobby, of Rogue Squadron fame, were stood around a fourth man who was lying spread eagled in a drunken stupor on the floor. Luke Skywalker appeared to be sleeping peacefully.

'Perhaps he's dead?' suggested Wes not very helpfully.

'He's not dead, he's still breathing.' answered Hobby, slightly annoyed with his friend's grim suggestion about the young Jedi's mortality.

'Well perhaps he's got brain damage then. Or perhaps he's had a heart attack' said Wes, 'or he might have even…'

Wes was interrupted by the other two shouting 'SHUT UP, WES!' loud enough to wake the dead. Or the very drunk, it appeared, as a small moan could be heard from the younger man on the floor.

'We need to find him a place to sleep' Wedge said. It was the first sensible suggestion of the night. One of the least sensible suggestions of the night had been _'Hey,_ _lets play another drinking game everyone!'_

'Come on lets move him.' said Hobby picking up Luke's legs.

* * *

Han Solo couldn't sleep. _Nothing new there,_ thought Han, cynically. One thing in particular was keeping him awake that night cycle though. And that had nothing to do with Jabba and the large amount of money he owed the Huttese crime lord.

What was keeping him awake that night was the sudden arrival of Bria Tharen back into his life.

* * *

_Earlier:_

'_Well you didn't shoot me on sight,' said Bria, 'should I take that as a good sign?'_

_She laughed nervously at her reference to the last thing Han had said to here on that fateful day on Ylesia._

'_If you like.' said Han, in a voice completely devoid of any emotion._

_But inside Han's emotions were going haywire. Questions were bouncing around his brain. 'What is she doing here?', 'Where did she come from?' and 'Since when did she think it was o.k. to speak to me?'. But above all these burning questions, a fact popped out of his subconscious and came tumbling into his mouth before he had chance to engage brain._

'_I thought you were dead. Fett told me you died on intelligence operation.' he said._

_Bria looked at him, shock registering on her face. Leia too was also looking at Han in shock but not for the same reasons._

_Questions were also bouncing around the Princess' mind. 'How does Han know Commander Tharen?'_

'_Very well' thought Leia, answering her own question, 'if this 'discussion' is anything to go by.'_

'_Fett lied. I was the only member of my team to escape that operation alive. He might have made it up to hurt you, Han. He knew that news of death would probably have upset you.' answered Bria, with a great deal more feeling than Han had shown her._

'_Well I'm glad you're not dead'. said Han._

_A look of hope crossed Bria's face. Did that mean he wanted to-?_

'_But that doesn't mean', he went on, 'that I want anything to do with you.'_

_And with that he turned and headed to the Falcon. He went in search of a decent stiff drink as opposed to the paint stripper they were drinking at the celebration_

_As her left Bria was about to call after him. But she thought the better of it and headed, instead back to her quarters. She was sure she would see him again. She was sure she would be able to convince him that what she had done, she had done out of a sense of duty to the Alliance, and she hadn't meant to hurt him. If he could understand that then maybe they still had a chance together._

_Leia was very confused. She wasn't sure what that had been about. And Han needed someone that did understand._

_The Princess found Chewie easily. He was the only eight foot tall, two hundred year old Wookiee at the party. He did stand out somewhat._

'_Chewbacca may I speak to you?' asked the Princess._

_She then told the Wookiee that Han had seen someone and it seemed to have upset him a bit. As soon as she mentioned the name 'Bria' the Wookiee was off toward the Falcon with a backward bark of thanks._

_Chewie found Han drinking a pitcher of whisky sitting at the Holo chess board._

_**The Princess told me **explained Chewie at Han's surprised expression._

_**Do you want to talk about it? **asked the Wookiee._

'_If you don't mind, pal, I'd rather not even think about it tonight.' replied Han gently.

* * *

_

Yet here he was, hours later, thinking about it. About _her_. He wasn't sure how he was meant to feel.

He was glad she wasn't dead. But when he had found out she was dead he had felt grief and some regret and also relief. Relief that she wouldn't track him down and make him face his feelings. Did that make him a bad person? He wasn't sure.

He wasn't sure of anything that night.

He rolled over and drifted into a fitful sleep.

* * *

**Well? Review, but no flames! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Too lazy to write disclaimers for every chapter. See first one.**

**First of all to my reviewers (woohoo plural!)**

**Culf: I have a feeling Bria might be sticking around for a while. And she almost certainly will try and split up Han and Leia. (Says she who hasn't written it yet!)**

**Pitdroid: I really used the element of surprise didn't I? I didn't realise how weird it be for other people because this story has been spinning around in my mind cogs for a while. And as for Leia stealing a boyfriend………. well let's see shall we? _(Evil smile!)_**

**Limelight: She does. And she will keep on doing it. (hehehahahah!)**

**cookiemunster loves you all! xoxox **

* * *

**Chapter 3**

_BANG!THUMP!BANG!_

Han was woken by banging on the hull of the _Falcon._ He stumbled out of his bunk. He hadn't got nearly enough sleep and the sleep he had got wasn't refreshing sleep. In fact he felt more tired now than he did when he had gone to bed.

_BANG!THUMP!BANG!_

Han panicked for a moment. He briefly thought that it might have been Boba Fett banging on his ship, coming to collect a Solo shaped bounty.

But then he remembered where he was.

_BANG!THUMP!BANG!_

'_No bounty hunters on Yavin'_ he thought. At least he hoped not.

And then the previous evening came back to him in soggy lumps of thought.

_Bria._

_BANG!THUMP!BANG!_

Was it Bria banging on his ship? Come to plead her case?

Han glanced at the small chrono. 0400 standard hours. Nope, not Bria. She was never a morning person. And of course he'd know.

_BANG!THUMP!BANG!_

'_Stop it' _he told himself, firmly._ 'Stop thinking about her, you don't need all that again.'_

He pulled on some pants and a shirt and went to investigate the mystery disturbance.

* * *

Wedge, Wes and Hobby had been carrying Luke Skywalker's drunken form around for the best part of an hour. They were looking for somewhere Luke could stay the night. As he wasn't an official member of the Alliance yet, Skywalker had no quarters.

They had managed to disturb at least fifty rebels and at least three pairs of rebels who definitely _weren't _sleeping.

They had been cursed and yelled at. Some rebels were very liberal with the use of the 'f' word.

Wedge had hurt his hand on some broken glass and Hobby had sprained his ankle. Even Wes had been very subdued after they had knocked on one couple's door.

'What's up, Wes?' asked Hobby.

'I thought that girl in there liked _me_' said Wes miserably.

'Don't worry about it. Plenty more fish in the sea. Loads more pebbles on the beach.' said Wedge, who thought of himself as a kind of amateur philosopher.

'So what your saying is, I have to go to a beach or a shoreline to get a girl? Are you suggesting that only a mermaid would fancy a guy like me? Because if you are then, then, then,…. your _wrong' _slurred Wes.

All three men were still drunk. This is why it had never occurred to any of them just to take Luke back to _their own_ quarters to sleep off his drunkenness.

'Hey, guys I've had a fantastic idea!' proclaimed Hobby.

Which is why, when Han lowered the ramp of the Millennium Falcon, he could see Wedge, Wes, Hobby and a still paralytic Luke standing (or lying) at the bottom of the ramp. The three men that could still stand were looking up at him with hope in their eyes.

* * *

'How did you let him get this drunk?' asked Han of the Rogues. 

Wedge, Wes and Hobby were reminded of long ago school lectures on 'The Dangers of Drink'. Han had been quite angry when they carried Luke aboard. Not because his sleeping had been disturbed but that his young friend was in such an awful state.

'Well, um' , began Wedge, 'everyone wanted to give Luke a drink, you know, to um, say thanks and everything so I guess he thought it would be rude to say, um, no to them, I guess.'

'Yeah', agreed Wes , wholeheartedly, 'and we're really sorry and we promise it'll never happen again, Mister Solo.'

All three Rouges were staring at there shoes in the manner of naughty school boys, about to be berated by a tyrannical headmaster.

Han had his back turned when Wes said 'Mister Solo' so the Rogues didn't see the brief smile of amusement flitter across his face.

All of the Rogues were a bit in awe of Han. He was like a _really cool_ guy. He flew ships dead fast and smuggled spice. He was tough. He got all the girls. He had his own blaster and holster that wasn't Alliance issue. He probably had an illegal weapons cache on his ship. Like all the heroes they had admired as young children. Han seemed the living embodiment of these fantastical beings.

These 'heroes' that all little boys admire are simply 2D characters. They have no feelings. They don't get hurt in the emotional sense.

Underneath his fly-boy façade Han was a kind man who cared about people very deeply. His mask came in very handy sometimes, though. On some days, Han even convinced himself he had no softer feelings.

'Alright ,you guys can go' said Han to the Rogues. Han was thoroughly amused by the younger men and their attitude towards him. It had almost cheered him up from his earlier gloom and confusion. _Almost._

There was an audible sigh of relief from the younger men as they headed off the ship.

'But if anything like this ever happens again,' began Han in his most menacing voice,

Here it comes thought the Rogues, the Lecture.

'-just give him two paracetamol, a glass of water and a bucket.Got that?' finished Han.

The Rogues nodded pleased that, instead of the expected lecture, they simply got some practical advice.

'And guys?' called Han after them.

They turned round again.

'If you ever, _ever_ touch my ship again, let alone bang on it, I will have my Wookiee rip your arms off. O.K.?'

The Rogues nodded, turned and legged it back to their quarters.

Han smiled. It was a bit mean threatening those kids like that. At least they would know to keep an eye on Luke during drinking sessions from now on .He turned and went back onto the ship and to the Crew bunks where Luke was _still_ sleeping.

Han poured a glass of water, got a bucket from the utilitycupboard and found two paracetamol in the medicine cabinet. He set them down on the small shelf by Luke's bunk.

'You'll need them in a few hours, kid' he said to Luke's sleeping form.

He headed back to his cabin, lay down on the bunk, and tried not to think about anything. Or anyone.

* * *

**Well? I know it's not the most informing chapter but I think it's o.k. Next up it's the Medal giving Ceremony! **

**(And yes they do have paracetamol in the Star Wars universe. If they can have hot chocolate then they can damn well have headache cures!)**

**Review, you must.**


	4. Chapter 4

**First of all: To my reviewers! (Woo! Celebrate! Gets some fireworks! Alert the gymnastics display team! Hire a D.J!)**

**Shadow131: Glad you like drinking games and drunkenness. (Not sure entirely what that says about you as a person, but oh well!) Expect more drunkenness from the Rogues. The drinking game was created by my brother and his mates.**

**(Wes wasn't even _that _drunk!)**

**Limelight: That 'fantastic' piece of advice was the same my dad gave my cousin, after he had just split up with his boyfriend of seven years. My cousin said to him 'Plenty more fish in the sea? Loads more pebbles on the beach?' and then he sat down and cried for about 3 hours. (My cousin, not my dad)**

**(My cousin got back with his boyfriend. They've bought a dog and are very happy. So they weren't really affected by my dad's poor advice)**

**Pitdroid: Ah, I have great plans for poor Wes. And in this story _no one_ would want to be set up with Bria! Not even Wes, who, apparently likes to date half fish women.**

**Thank you! cookiemunster xoxox

* * *

**

**Chapter 4**

Princess Leia sat at her dressing table, staring into space. Well 'dressing table' was a bit of a glorification of the old plastic table and mirror, propped on top of it.

She was daydreaming. She was thinking of Alderaan. It was the gown that she had been brought to wear for the ceremony later that day that had set of this particular daydream. It was a simple white gown with a belt around the waist and a flowing silk cape. It was Alderaan personified in white muslin.

After the girl had dropped off the dress in her room, Leia just stared at it. The dress reminded her of just how much she had lost and how much she had not had chance to mourn yet. Somehow, though, it felt oddly right that she should wear an Alderaanian gown to commend those who helped destroy the Death Star. It showed defiance in the wake of terrible destruction.

_Terrible destruction. _A vision of Alderaan popped into her mind. So serene and sedate, hanging in space in those fleeting moments before it had been blasted into oblivion.

She suddenly felt sick, as she often had done these last few days since. The feeling soon passed and resided into the dull ache. Leia felt dead on the inside.

But she braided her hair and put on her fatigues. This was her cover. She wasn't Leia anymore. She was Rebel Senator Leia Organa. Her mask was firmly on.

'_Don't show them you're in pain. Don't show weakness' _she told herself.

She got up and headed out of her quarters and toward the hangar bay. Towards the ugly Correlian freighter ship that was docked there. She had some questions and she wanted answers to them.

She ignored the pain in the place where her heart should have been.

* * *

'Unnhgh' were the first sounds to be uttered by Luke Skywalker that day. He had just attempted to open his eyes. His brain sent a message of 'It isn't going to happen, mate, so don't bother'. Luke paid no heed to this message and he immediately regretted it. The lighting in the crew quarters was too bright for Luke's sensitive hangover. 

'Mornin' kid!' said Han Solo who had wondered into the room to check up on the young Jedi.

Han's good natured welcome sounded, to Luke's fragile mind, like a herd of Bantha's running through his mind.

All Han received from Luke in response was a moan of veritable agony.

Han laughed. 'You'll get used to it.' said Han, before leaving Luke with his pain.

* * *

Han was in resolute mood. He had decided a few things in the time when he was supposed to be getting some sleep.

For a start he was still very, very angry with Bria and her betrayal. He had thought that she had loved him. Obviously it couldn't have been the case. No one betrays someone to that magnitude if they truly loved them.

But he decided to put that firmly in the past. Just like his relationship with Bria. After all that was just what he had been doing this last week or so since Fett had told him that 'the Tharen woman' (as Fett had called her) was dead.

In fact it was what he had been doing since Ylesia.

So he would forgive her. Surprisingly, Han hated to keep grudges. He saw that if he forgave people, then there was one least person in the galaxy who wanted to kill him. And that was always a plus.

Han was surprised, when he reached the _Falcon's _small kitchen area, to see Princess Leia standing there. She was surveying the leftovers of Han and Chewie's breakfast.

Chewie had somehow managed to get a perfectly good night of sleep. He had only awoken when he heard Han banging about at 0600 hours. When Chewie went to question why Solo was making such a racket at an ungodsly hour, he only got the terse answer of 'Repairs'

Chewie hadn't pushed it. He knew when Han didn't want to be asked twelve dozen questions about his feelings.

'Good morning, Captain Solo.' Leia said, as though she was addressing a fellow Senator.

'Oh, morning, your Highnessness.' Han said as he saw Leia.

Leia's cheeks went about ten shades of pink darker, when Han used his flippant nickname for her.

She would have said that it was a flush of indignation. About everyone else would take it as a sign that the young Princess was more than slightly attracted to the Correlian pilot. She would have deigned that accusation, even under electric shock torture.

Han loved making the Princess blush. It was just so easy to do. And she looked very pretty, all pink in the face.

Han gestured for her to sit down at the table. She did so, accordingly. He began to make a pot of Kaffe.

'Thanks for last night by the way, just running off and leaving me was really polite, Captain.' she said wryly as he handed her a cup.

'Oh, yeah, right um... Sorry 'bout that.' he answered, giving no indication as to why he had run off last night. Leia knew it was about Commander Tharen, but she had no inkling as to why he would not want to see Bria.

Well, Leia could guess. She assumed that Bria had done something, in the past to upset Han. Perhaps Bria had broken up with him, and now wanted him back. Leia could only assume that they had been in some sort of emotional relationship, and now they weren't. Somehow that explanation didn't seem enough. That explanation didn't warrant Han's running off like that.

'So,' said Leia, trying to sound casual but failing, 'how do you know Bria Tharen?'

Han had been expecting this line of questioning ever since he had seen the determined look on Leia's face. He had almost forgotten that the Princess had witnessed the entire incident with Bria the night before. She had even had the good sense to fetch Chewie.

For once, Han didn't want to be all evasive. He didn't feel it was fair on The Princess. He _had _abandoned her in a sea of drunk revellers. He also felt a need to justify his actions. He didn't no why, he guessed he just didn't want the Princess to see him as a bad guy. Whatever _that _meant.

'Bria Tharen used to be my girlfriend.' Han began.

'_Ahah! I knew it!'_ thought Leia.

'We had just gotten back together after nine years. You see, she became a Rebel agent and I decided that that kind of job wasn't for me. At the time, smuggling seemed a safer option. Anyway, we decided to raid this temple on Ylesia. This temple filled with all kinds of jewels and treasure. I got together a band of smugglers to help. I thought it would be easy enough. But it wasn't. People... people died. My friends died in that attack.'

Han paused and found himself thinking of Jarik. Jarik, one time Solo family membe,hadn't stood a chance.

Leia had listened intently to Han. She was surprised that he was telling her so much. Perhaps it was easier for him to talk to someone he didn't know.

'Anyway, us survivors were planning on getting our share of the reward' Han said, his voice filled suddenly with venom.

'And I guess you didn't get what you deserved.' filled in Leia, understanding why Han felt so mad. Ripped off by his own girlfriend. That was, well, _low_.

'No we didn't. And all of my smuggling buddies thought _I _knew about it all along. All I earned myself that day was a punch in the face. Bria took all the valuable stuff to help pay for some Alliance stuff. And I told her that if I ever saw her again, I would shoot her.' Han stopped, abruptly, and took a sip of his Kaffe.

'So now you know why I was less than thrilled to see her last night. And a bit shocked 'cause a bounty hunter had told me she was dead.' said Han. He finished his Kaffe and took his mug to the sink.

Leia tried to digest everything. She felt a lot of sympathy for Han and his predicament. She wasn't sure how she felt about Commander Tharen. The woman had obviously felt a sense of duty towards the Rebellion, but to go to such devious methods to fulfil that duty, well, that wasn't the way of the Alliance.

'C'mon,' said Han, breaking her out of her reverie,' lets go check on Farmboy.'

* * *

**Well? Leia knows! I know I promised the Ceremony in this chapter, but I wanted to write a 'just Han and Leia' scene. I also felt that Han should tell her about Bria and explain his behaviour towards her. Because Han's a nice guy really! And he already likes her royal Highnessness! Yay!**

**Please Review! No flames! Or I will send my gang of Llamas after you. (Have you ever been hoofed bya Llama? Whole new level of pain my friend. Whole new level of pain.)**


	5. Chapter 5

**First of all: It is official! Eleven reviews! _Double Figures! _Yay!**

**Bailey Martin: Thank you! And not enough people do call Luke Farmboy! (Cheers for favouriting me as well!)**

**Pitdroid: Yeah, I felt it was important for Leia to no about the whole Han/Bria fandango. You always seem to be right on the money with your reviews! How do you do it? (cookiemunster suspects some kind of Jedi Mind Trick or similar.)**

**KrazywithaK: Cheers, I thought 'banthas' would be more Star Warsesque than'elephants'. I'm sorry my review of your story wasn't more comprehensive. **

**Thank you! Love ya!**

**cookiemunster xoxox

* * *

**

**Chapter 5 **

Chewbacca had never hated anyone in his long life. Not the slavers who had captured him and taken him away from Malla. Not the power mad imp who had attacked him. Not even the slime he and Han had to deal with during smuggling. It was not in his nature.

But Tharen. He could honestly he hated her with every ounce of his being. What she had done to Han……..

He had never seen his 'cub' look so dead inside. Even when Solo hid it and put on a brave face.

So when he heard from the Princess that Tharen had had the gall to talk to Han last night it had sent him into a quiet fury. Chewbacca had been secretly glad when Fett had told Han that the woman was dead. But now she was back.

Chewbacca had left the _Falcon _a few minutes before the Princess had arrived. He had gone to borrow a set of macro-fusers as the ones he had been using to fix a few surface panels had ceased to work. The techs in the maintenance had been only too happy to help the Wookiee.

Apparently there was some rumour flying about the base that the massive Wookiee could rip arms out of peoples' sockets. Or that's what Rouge Squadron had been saying, anyway.

Chewbacca reached the Falcon with the macro-fusers in hand. He stopped at the top of the ramp. He listened. He could hear laughter. A ,an and a woman were laughing aboard the ship. He recognized one of the laughs as Han's, but the other he could not identify. For a sickening moment, the Wookiee panicked that it was Bria Tharen. Had Han really been stupid enough to take the scheming gutter wench back?

But then he saw the comforting sight of a still giggling Han Solo and Princess Leia leaving the crew quarters.

Then they stopped giggling as the sound of vomiting filled the small passage way.

'He better have done that in the bucket.' said Han to Leia in a low whisper.

It set them both off in quiet, guilty, laughter that they tried desperately to conceal from Luke who was just beginning to recover from his first hangover.

'You know, I can hear you.' Luke's voice called weakly from the cabin.

* * *

'Poor kid.' Han observed, a little later. 

'Still, it was quite funny wasn't it?' said Leia with a look of amusement in her eyes.

After they had calmed down, Han and the Princess had explained why they were laughing to Chewbacca. Apparently, Han had shaken the Jedi awake, only to be called 'Aunt Beru' by the still mildly drunk Luke.

Luke had hold of Han's arm and told his 'Aunt Beru' (Han) all about his amazing dream where he had rescued a pretty Princess and flown a really cool ship, that fired rockets and everything, and he blew up the Death Star and the Princess had kissed him and everyone had called him a hero and…. then it all went a bit hazy.

Then the younger man had let go of Han's arm and had fallen back to sleep. He was woken about thirty seconds later by the laughter of his new friends. Luke had been confused but felt that he wanted to be alone to 'have a little rest' (polite code for puking up, but Luke didn't want to say so in front of the Princess.)

Luke staggered into the small holding bay, where the others were sat over mugs of kaffe. His hair was sticking up all over the place and his tunic was grey with sweat. His face was pale green in colour and he was clutching his head in apparent agony.

'You O.K. Luke?' asked Han.

'Slightly better.' Luke conceded to the Correlian.

'That's the best thing about hangovers, once you've thrown up everything you've eaten in the past three months, you start to feel a whole lot better.' said Han a wry grin of recognition spreading across his face.

* * *

Han and Chewie had had their work cut out but they'd managed it. With a little help from the Princess (she had left after an hour to get ready for the Ceremony) they had managed to get Skywalker sober and sober and standing. 

They had managed it with about two hundred cups of kaffe and a lot of moral encouragement.

Now Luke was standing beside Han, waiting to enter the great hall of Yavin. Luke was wearing a yellow jacket thing and some clean clothes. Han was wearing a different shirt. Han prided himself on not being high maintenance.

They had about five minutes to kill before going into the hall. Han had jokily suggested them grabbing a quick drink but Luke had only looked at him with disdain. Luke would never drink again.

About three minutes before they were due to go in Luke said; 'Hey, do you know that woman?'

He was looking at someone walking the corridor behind Han, heading towards them.

Han spun round to see Bria wearing a black dress. She also had her hair up and a pair of ridiculously high-heeled shoes on. She stopped when Han had turned round.

For some reason, seeing Bria dressed up just didn't excite the normal feelings inside Han. Sure, she looked nice but that was it. Nothing more. Nothing deeper.

'Oh, hi.' said Han.

'Hello' replied Bria.

Luke looked at them both in confusion. These two obviously knew each other but,

'I didn't know you were getting a medal thingy as well.' Han said to Bria

'Oh, yes. They are rewarding one to me for retrieving the Death Star plans.' Bria answered, trying not to make the pride in her voice too obvious.

On the inside she was bursting. She could see that she had a long way to go with Han, but she would win him back. And he was here on her special day! It was so perfect.

Han looked at Luke, who was still blatantly confused. Han put him out of his misery.

'Luke Skywalker, this is Bria Tharen an old, er, acquaintance of mine.' he said.

Luke and Bria shook hands.

Then the signal came for the trio to enter.

* * *

Princess Leia Organa watched as the three of them made their way up the long runway. All of the Rebels (some with severe hangovers) were assembled in massive rows along the length of the runway. 

Leia suddenly felt a pang of guilt as she saw Bria and Han walking next to each other. Leia had wanted to tell Han about Bria receiving a medal, but the Princess had only known seconds before Solo had. Still, he seemed to bearing it well.

The reached the platform she was standing on. She hung a medal, first around Bria's head and the Han's (Han gave her a roguish wink, which, she couldn't deny, made her smile) and then Luke's. Then all three turned round and the Rebels began to cheer.

* * *

Luke was overcome with pride. He had respect. He was appreciated. He wished that feeling could last forever.

* * *

Han felt happy. He couldn't get over how beautiful the Princess was. She looked like an Angel. It was funny how, when he was stood in front of two thousand people, all screaming with appreciation, all he wanted to do was turn around and see her again.

* * *

Bria was seething on the inside. She had seen that wink. She tried to tell herself that it was simply Solo's way of making her jealous. But there was something in the way they had smiled at each other. And the fact Han was looking so handsome. And Bria thought that she looked good until she had seen the Princess. Leia Organa was something else in that white dress. 

Bria wasn't about to lose out to some Princess. No, she would get her man. And she would use any means possible.

* * *

**Well? Anyone else slightly scared of Bria? 'Cos I am! Please review. No flames!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi, this is a very short chapter (as I am going away till Thursday and wanted to get something more up) and I will reply to my lovely reviewers next chapter.

* * *

**

**Chapter 6**

Bria Tharenwasin her small quarters. She had been sat for three hours on her bed, thinking. She was forming a plan in her mind.

She had to make Han hate the Princess. She had to make him see what her Royal Highness, Leia Organa wasn't an angel and that she was actually scum. Bria had watched Han talking to the Princess. He was flirting with her, making her laugh. Bria had found it hard to choke down her jealousy.

Bria knew that a hard task lay before her. But she would destroy the Princess and besmirch her good name and then she would get Han back.

Bria thought back to her conversation with Han. He had explained that he was willing to forgive her but he didn't want her back. Bria had thought_ 'We will see about that'._

Bria smiled to herself and then got up. She walked to her desk, turned on her console and began to write a letter.

She finished it, read it back, printed it out on the small lazer printerand then she laughed.

'_Oh yes;'_ thought Bria, _'I **will **get Han back.'

* * *

_

**Don't worry if this makes no sense. It will eventually.**


	7. Chapter 7

**First of all:**

**Pitdroid: Thank you! And by the time this story is done, no one will like Bria. **

**And I don't think Luke and Bria would be right for each other, anyway. I mean, she used to go out with Han Solo. Poor Luke would be constantly compared. Luke's alright but he's no young Harrison Ford, is he?**

**KrazywithaK: I love the Barenaked Ladies! And _One Week_ is the Han/Leia song. But I also think _Shut Yer face _by A is a brilliant song for them. It's basically a couple fighting saying despairing things about each other e.g.**

'_**You are from Venus and I am from Mars / You want your penis as big as your car'**_

**And so on. ; 0**

**Ready to find out what the Letter was all about?

* * *

**

**Chapter 7**

Leia was combing her hair in front of her mirror. She had changed out of her dress and into a pair of flannel pyjamas, which were hardly the height of fashion but who cared? They were comfortable and she was only going to sleep in them.

She was thinking of the events of a few hours before. She had had a far better evening than could have been expected under her current circumstances. This was due, more than she would like to admit, to the attention of Han Solo.

He had been extremely kind to her all day. Unlike most people, he didn't ask painful questions about how she was feeling. He didn't say 'Are you all right?' every two minutes. He just seemed to understand that she needed diversion from Alderaan's fate, for now at least.

Han had spent most of the evening with her. Luke had hung around with them for a while, but he then went in search of 'the guys'(Rogue Squadron). Han had warned him not to drinktoo much, and Leia had told him to have fun. Both Han and Leia realised, as Luke gave them a backward glance filled with contempt, that they probably sounded like a pair of worried parents.

Despite the fact that Leia was exactly the same age as Luke, she was definitely the more mature. This was almost certainly due to the circumstance of their respective upbringings. Leia was used to large social gatherings, where alcohol flowed freely. Luke had barely been allowed a sip of slightly alcoholic fizzy wine before the celebration of the night before.

Leia smiled, finding she was thinking of Han again. He had only left her once all evening, when he had gone to talk to Bria. When he got back he seemed more at ease and happier.

After his talk with her, Leia had tried not to notice that Bria Tharen's eyes had been fixed on Han and herself for the duration of the evening. Han hadn't noticed, but Leia kept catching the older woman's eye and it made her feel decidedly uneasy. Like Bria was looking for some fault with the Princess.

Still, Han had distracted her from all thoughts of Bria. He had made the Princess laugh so many times that evening, with his arguments and even a stupid, yet quite convincing impression of Jan Dodonna, which was made even more amusing as the man himself was stood right behind him as he did it. Han had turned round, smiled disarmingly at Dodonna then he had given a jaunty salute to the General.

Dodonna, utterly perplexed by the whole situation had smiled nervously, and then bid a hasty exit as the Princess had fought valiantly to hold back the giggles.

Leia hadn't expected to ever laugh again. Yet she had enjoyed her evening. In fact, she hardly ever thought about Alderaan in Han's company.

She smiled, one last time. Leia thought of a certain Correlian's hazel eyes, dancing with good humour, as she turned off her desk light and climbed into bed. She began to dream of a beautiful planet and a man who had only once visited it.

* * *

The next morning, the entire bases had been awakened by a scream. Like many others Leia sprung out of bed and sprinted out of her quarters. She was desperately hoping that it was something more trifling than an Imperial attack, but she had to assume the worst. 

The scream had come from Bria Tharen's quarters and indeed, it was Bria Tharen who was screaming.

Han Solo was the first to get to Bria, as he had been up early and had been fixing up the Falcon. Her quarters were very close to the hangar bay, so he had heard her screaming and came running at once.

He found her sobbing over a letter. When he approached her she threw herself into his arms and cried; 'Oh Han! It's so awful!'

Han tried to be sympathetic and disengage from Bria's grip at the same time. It was not an easy task. He settled for pulling her away on the pretence of looking to see if she was hurt. She was not, but she continued to cry fitfully. She leaned into his chest again

'Gods, Bria, what is it?' he asked, tentatively.

'This.' she said and handed him the letter.

By this point many others had gathered round and were quite confused. Han, as perplexed as any of the others, read the letter aloud. It was as follows:

**_I am going to kill you Bria Tharen. I am going to make you suffer. As you made him suffer. You will regret your actions. I will not regret mine. You are an evil bitch and I shall enjoy your agonizing death._**

**_See you in hell, you slut._**

After Han had finished reding there was alot of discussionamong the small group of Rebels. Everyone was extremely confused. Who would write something so awful? Who was the 'him' the writer mentioned? Han felt, with sinking regret that he knew that the 'him' was in fact Han Solo, himself. And if that were true, he knew of only two people who could have written this. Chewbacca and…..

'What's going on?' inquired the Princess.

* * *

**Bria's plan any clearer? Please review. **


	8. Chapter 8

**First of all, to my fabulous reveiwers:**

**KrazywithaK: It is a brilliant song. And I want to give Han a hug too. Leia couldhit me all she wants, I dont think I would care! (She's a bit violent for a Princess, isn't she?) Thanks for reveiwing!**

**GreatOne: He might do, or he might be a bit distarcted! Read on, you'll find out what I mean!**

**Pitdroid: Yeah, there is no way Chewie could have written the letter. He had motive, but how on earth could he have typed it with massive furry paws? And Han would never suspect Leia... or would he?**

**Thank you everyone!**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

A couple of hours later and Bria was sat aboard the _Falcon_, sipping kaffe gratefully out of a mug. All that fake emotion had really tired her out.

Still her fatigue was nothing compared to her feeling of triumph. He hadn't said so, but Bria knew that Han suspected that the Princess had written the letter. Just as she had planned him to.

'_Perfect' _she thought.

With the first seeds of doubt over the Princess sown in Han's mind it would not be at all hard of convincing him that the Princess wasn't as perfect as she seemed. And then Han wouldbe Bria's again.

Bria smiled to herself, relishing the thought of that. Han had been so kind to her today. She didn't doubt that he still had feelings for her. He probably still loved her. He just needed a little convincing.

Bria heard Han coming up the ramp. He had gone to her room to get a few things as it had been decided that she would stay aboard the _Falcon_ that night. In the crew quarters though, _not i_n Han's cabin.

Luke Skywalker had offered to stay the night in her quarters and to help find the person who had written the death threat. Bria had thanked him for his kindness. He really was a genuinely sweet boy. He also had a serious crush on little Miss Perfect Princess. Perhaps if Plan A didn't work, Bria could use Luke as Plan B. Tempt the Princess away from Han using Luke. Or Bria herself could use Luke to make Han jealous. Then he would come crawling back.

Han entered the cabin and put the small bag down on the seat next to Bria. Bria smiled at him gratefully.

'Thanks.' she said in a very weak, yet completely put on, voice.

'How you feeling?' asked Han. Despite the fact he no longer felt the way aboutherthat Bria seemed to think he did, he still cared about her.

'Still a bit shaken up. But I feel a lot better know you're here.' she answered, looking up at him with large eyes.

He was stood in front of her. He seemed a bit uncomfortable and wanted to keep distance between them by standing up. He cleared his throat.

'Yeah, well I'm always here for you. As a friend.' he added meaningfully.

'_Oh, so he wants to be like that does he?' _thought Bria_. 'We will see.'_

'I couldn't expect anything more than friendship from you Han. The way I acted towards you, well, you didn't deserve it. I apologize.' said Bria.

Han wasn't sure what to make of that. He knew she was sorry. She had said it enough times the night before and that morning.

'But', said Bria, standing up, 'you are such a kind and forgiving man. Would I be completely wrong in thinking that there was a chance for us?'

While she was saying this, she moved so she was stood in front of him.

She knew that she looked her best. After he had left her to collect her stuff, she had repaired her tear damaged eye make up and she had applied some lip gloss. She had also brushed her strawberry blonde mane so it shined. She had found her cosmetics in the bathroom where she had left them a few months before. This had convinced her that Han had not let go of his feelings for her. Why would he have kept her make up, a memento of her, for so long, if he didn't still care?

'Look Bria', Han began, 'I care about you. You know that. But that's it. O.k.? He then moved back and away from her. She had been standing very close to him.

'I don't want to hurt you. I know how upset you are over this letter,' he continued.

But then he stopped. Because Bria had begun to cry again. He went over to her and at loss for anything to do; he put his arms loosely around her.

'I'm so sorry, Han;' she sobbed into his chest. 'It's this death threat business; it's really got to me. I can't believe that someone wants to kill me!'

Han held her for a moment. He couldn't believe it either. He could see was upset, but there was something not quite right about this. It was something about the way Bria's reaction that was not quite _right _somehow. He couldn't put his finger on it, but the doubt was there, niggling away at him.

He couldn't believe that Chewie or Leia could have written the note. It wasn't like either of them. For a start he knew Chewie to well. And he doubted Leia would have used that language, even in a death threat.

The alternative was simply a cruel prank. He could see no other reason. Well he _could _see another reason, but it was so unlikely that it was barely worth thinking of.

After a couple of minutes, Bria stopped crying and Han stopped hugging her. They looked at each other for a moment.

'My knight in shining armour.' she said.

And then she leaned in and kissed him. On the lips.

* * *

**And I'll leave it there, for now. You can give unsigned reveiws now as well as signed ones so you can tell me what you think!**


	9. Chapter 9

**First of all: Sorry! I've been doing stuff and watching cricket so I haven't written in ages. **

**DarthLady14: Thanks! And I hope Bria doesn't ruin it for Han and Leia either, but you never know! **

**GreatOne: Nice one Roadrunner. And she is so totally faking to get attention. **

**Lady Echo: Han has brains. But then again he is male. We will just have to see whether or not he is blinded by stupid shiny-teeth-blue-eyeshadow-wearing-creepetes (Bria). **

**KrazywithaK: Strong feelings there from you! Yeah I LOATHE her to. And Han would never believe the Princess capable of that threat because he knows how self righteous she is. I mean, it's pretty hypocritical to be all fighting against evil and at the same time sending out death threats (Huh, Bria?) **

**Yeah, this plot probably will backfire. However, others might not. OO!**

**Totally fearing your wrath by the way.**

**hanrox (yeah he does don't he?) Yeah Leia might be feeling betrayed. But she definitely will before this chapter is through! **

**Pitdroid: Han is a nice man (We all know how Leia feels about 'nice men').**

**Your right, he doesn't owe Bria anything. But remember once upon a time he did love her. He may feels he owes her friendship at least. **

**DarthShanni: Yeah, you think you hate her now. But you will hate her so much more by the end. I promise. He He! I loved writing that letter! She is so evil! And very scary. She's like Paris Hilton scary. (Paris Hilton terrifies me. Is she real? Is she a Fem-bot? Does she ever eat?)**

**Cheers everyone!

* * *

**

**Chapter 9**

'I wouldn't have screamed.' said Wes.

'What?' asked Wedge.

The two men were sat in the mess area of the Rebel base. They had been talking about the death threat that Commander Tharen had received that morning. That was what the whole base was talking about.

Well, one half of the base (the male half) was talking about the death threat. The other, female, half were talking about the Commander throwing herself at Han Solo. Not that any of the women were jealous. Perish the thought.

'I'm just saying', said Wes, through a mouthful of blue yoghurt, 'that I wouldn't have screamed if I had received that note thing.'

'That 'note thing' threatened to kill her.' said Wedge.

'Yeah, but it wasn't that graphic was it? It didn't say 'I'm going to slice your nose of and throw it at the brass' did it? And it wasn't like she woke up with a tauntaun's head on her pillow.' Wes explained.

'Tauntaun's head on her pillow?' asked Wedge.

'Saw it in a film.' replied Wes, slightly sheepishly.

Wedge shook his head, but at the same time realised that his friend had struck a chord of recognition in his mind.

Yes, it was shocking to receive a death threat. There was no denying that. But there was nothing in the threat that would make a grown woman scream. And Bria wasn't just any woman. She was a commander of the Rebellion. She had people shooting at her everyday.

Anyone would have expected her just to laugh and throw the note away. And even if she was freaked out by it, it was no reason to scream continuously like she had done.

The whole situation seemed very, very odd.

'Hmm.' said Wedge.

Hobbie plonked himself down next to Wes. He had gone to get some kaffe.

He looked down at the grey, weak looking liquid and felt slightly disillusioned. He couldn't help thinking that the Imps probably had decent cups of Kaffe. Perhaps they even had one of those machines that shakes the milk up and makes it all frothy and chocolate shakers to sprinkle on top of their drinks and they might even have biscotti. Gods it was ages since Hobbie had eaten decent biscotti.

'Hobbs, are you alright mate?' asked Wedge. His friend appeared to have gone into a sort of trance thing. He was also drooling a bit. It wasn't very attractive.

'Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine.' Wedge had interrupted Hobbie's small fantasy about chocolate cake. Mmmmmmmm……. chocolate cake.

'Anyway,' said Wedge, 'what do you think about this whole death threat thing?

'I don't know', answered Hobbie, 'I think there is something weird going on. I mean who was that guy mentioned in the letter? You know, that 'he' bloke?'

'Dunno, but it might have something to do with Han.' said Wedge. They had all seen Han Solo carrying a sobbing Commander Tharen back to the _Falcon._ She had been clinging to him like an upset child. He was holding her loosely, like he didn't want to get too close to her.

'They used to go out.' said Wes.

'What?' asked Hobbie and Wedge in unison. This was news to them.

'Yeah, Luke told me. Han had told him that Bria had double crossed him. Han said that he had thought she was dead for the last couple of weeks. A bounty hunter had told him that she had been killed on that mission to retrieve the Death Star plans, when actually, she was the only one that survived.' summed up Wes. He felt quite happy that he knew something his friends didn't.

'Well, that puts a whole new spin on things, doesn't it?' said Wedge.

'How do you mean?' asked Hobbie.

'Well if we can find out who knew about Han and Bria and what happened between them, then we can found out who wrote that threat.' replied Wedge, the excitement rising in his voice.

'YEAH!' agreed Wes. He was excited as well. He had always wanted to solve mysteries.

'Hold on, Crockett and Tubbs', said Hobbie, holding his hand up, 'the Brass are already investigating the incident. They don't need us messing it up for them.'

'Oh come on Hobbs, don't be boring!' said Wedge.

'Yeah, come on Hobbie! You know all those detectives always get the girls!' said Wes.

'We aren't detectives and you have a one track mind.' said Hobbie grumpily.

'Come on, it'll be brilliant! I can make badges out of tin foil and we can burst into people's quarters and yell 'We're here on official business!' and we can confiscate their biscuits while we look for clues!' said Wes describing a fantastic future as the three musketeers of crime fighting.

'Oh, alright then.' said Hobbie giving in. After all he did like biscuits

* * *

'What the Hell did you do that for?' Han asked. He was furious. How dare she try and do this to him. Again! What was it with this woman? Was she mental? 

'Um… well… I thought it was what you wanted?' said Bria. She was genuinely taken aback. She thought he would have been happy about them. It looked like he might need some more convincing.

Han turned and left the crew quarters. He was just so disgusted with her.

For a moment Han thought he had heard footsteps on the ramp of the ship. There was no one there though. He must be losing his mind. He went to the cock pit of his ship, locked the door and sat in his chair. Perhaps he could find some repairs to do.

Leia ran across the hangar. She had gone to the Falcon to see if Bria was alright. When she got to the crew quarters she had seen Han and Bria kissing. Well she wasn't about to hang about and see if they noticed her.

Leia felt very confused. Was Han going to get back together with Bria? What about Ylesia? Why did she care anyway?

* * *

**Please review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**This chapter has been added for GreatOne for giving me the nicest bit of criticism ever. And I'm in a good mood as we have biscotti. (We went shopping and I had made myself hungry with the last chapter!)

* * *

'Crockett and Tubbs?' asked Wedge of Hobbie. A few minutes ago, Hobbie had called he and Wes 'Crockett and Tubbs' and Wedge wasn't entirely sure why. **

'Yeah, you remember, off _Correlia Vice_. The crime fighting duo.' explained Hobbie.

'Oh yeah! The Wookiee and the Nemodian! They had really bad fashion sense! I loved those guys!' exclaimed Wes, who was cutting some tin foil into the shape of stars. For their official badges, of course.

'Oh gods that takes me back! I had my mum make me a bright blue suit and I used to roll my sleeves up and slick my hair back like the Wookiee did.' Wedge said remembering.

He looked at his friends' slightly aghast faces and realised that maybe he had shared a little too much.

'But you know, that was years ago.' Wedge explained blushing. 'Hey, are those star badges Wes?' he asked.

And the subject was changed, never to be brought up again. Well at least Wedge hoped it wouldnt be.

* * *

**More Han and Leia next chapter I promise! And I will answer other reveiws!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry. I have managed to lose my responses to the reviews. Whoops.**

**This chapter will confuse you, but don't worry, I have not gone mental all will be revealed.**

**I have made up a load of stuff and a tonne of other characters. I don't care if you think it's inaccurate or stupid. It's my story and I'll lie if I want to.**

**THIS CHAPTER MAY BE DISTRESSING FOR SOME PEOPLE. **

**I'm back by the way.

* * *

**

**Chapter 11**

**Dantooine, Secret HQ of Galatic Rebellion**

"What exactly are you saying Commander?" asked the General, running his hand through his thick black hair.

General Lisle never showed signs of nervousness. It was like the man was born without nerves. His dark eyes bore into the young commander who stood nervously in front of him. Unlike Lisle, Commander Ratchet had none of the coolness of nature which the General possessed. At that very moment, Ratchet was licking perspiration off his top lip and trying to hold the gaze of the formidable Rebellion leader.

"Well... uh... we have performed an in-depth investigation into the deaths of the troops at Toprawa and we found that a few of the troops appear to have been shot in the back" gabbled the Commander, willing himself not to lose his train of thought.

Lisle sighed. He glanced around his spacious office, with its high windows and tasteful colour scheme. He tried to focus his mind, which was swirling with thoughts.

He was a bright and caring man. When the relatives of the dead soldiers had asked for a post mortem of the deaths, he hadn't the heart to say no.

The holo-photography probes, which went with the elite troops on every mission, had been able to take thermal images of each of the dead bodies. It was one of the standard 'peace of mind' things which the Rebellion had turned into a policy. Not because anyone wanted to see the dead bodies of their sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, husbands and wives, it was just a way of proving that they had died fighting the heroic fight.

Lisle knew that soldiers don't get shot in the back by troops coming towards them. He didn't want to think about the other possibilities. But now it looked like he was going to have to.

"An enquiry was called into the deaths after one of the troops wives became suspicious, sir" said Ratchet, who had grown more confident in Lisle's silence.

"Why had she become suspicious?" Lisle interrupted.

"Well, this is merely circumstantial, sir. But she said that her husband had clashed previously with someone else on the task force. His wife had heard him say 'That woman will be the death of me'. And then he dies because of an accurate blaster shot in his back that went straight through his heart. She doesn't think that this was a coincidence, sir"

Lisle shut his eyes. He felt pain rise in his chest. It wasn't physical pain; he was very fit for a man in his early sixties. No, it was the kind of mental anguish which never really fades, it just gets blocked out. And then it comes back so quickly that it knocks you off your feet.

He tried to ignore the resemblance of this situation to one that he had found himself in, twenty years earlier during the Clone Wars.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and tuned back in to what the Commander was saying. Twenty years of keeping his stiff upper lip image were not going to come undone now.

"Anyway, it turns out that Carlson, that's her husband, had argued with the Commander just days before, as had a few other members of the task force. All the ones that had argued with her wound up dead sir. Either by the Imperial Forces or… by the friendly fire" said Ratchet diplomatically.

"If you would look at these holos sir, you can see that the exit wounds are on the chests of the victims, rather than through their backs" said Ratchet flipping open a portable holo-projector.

Lisle saw that from the behind the, blaster wounds of each of the victims were small, neat, precise holes in their backs. The pictures of the front of the bodies were more harrowing. Gaping holes and charred flesh were all that was left of torsos, the faces of the troops contorted in agony.

"Turn it off" snapped Lisle suddenly.

The Commander started. He had no idea that the General was so squeamish. He shut the holo off.

"I'm sorry sir" he said.

Lisle looked up at Ratchet. The man was barely more than a boy. He wouldn't know the truth about Lisle's aversion to corpses. For a moment, Lisle considered telling the man, but he thought better of it. Some things needed to remain in the past.

"Its alright, I just don't like seeing my troops... like that." said Lisle, hoping that it was a good enough explanation.

Apparently it was as Ratchet merely nodded.

"Sir, if what Carlson's wife says is true, we can be fairly certain that we have a dangerous person in our midst" said Ratchet.

"That would be true, but the Rebellion has already given the Commander a dishonourable discharge." Said Lisle reading off the holo screen where he had brought up official Rebellion records.

"What?" asked Ratchet incredulously. He was beginning to feel sick.

"Last month, Commander Bria Tharen was told to leave the Rebellion." explained Lisle.

"Then why was she decorated just two days ago at the Ceremony on Yavin IV?" asked Ratchet.The hair on the back of his neck had begun to rise.

The question hung in the air like a boulder on the edge of a cliff. It was only a matter of time before the effect of Ratchet's words would hit both of them at full force.

Lisle was the first to recover. He pressed the intercom on his desk and spoke to his secretary.

'Markus, could you arrange an emergency shuttle for myself, a task force and Commander Ratchet, please? The destination? Yavin IV."

* * *

**Well? Confused? I hope you are.I am!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Yeah I'm back. I need to write this story. It's weird. A few days ago I was thinking of abandoning it, but now it's not going to happen.**

**I' m sorry to those who reviewed, I don't really have time to write responses except that it will all become clear at the end and no, I will not make Bria less evil. That's the whole reason I started writing it and I'm sorry if you don't like it that way. **

**This chapter is for my Obsession Whores, especially for Becky who keeps on moaning at me to update. And for Sophie who is mental.

* * *

**

**Chapter 12**

Han sat in the cockpit, trying not to think. Which, when you are sat by yourself, with nothing else to do but think, is a lot harder than it seems.

He had pushed her away of course, after a few seconds. He couldn't understand why she had done it. Hadn't he made himself clear about his feelings? Obviously not clear enough. Either that or Bria had gone a bit funny in the head.

He sighed. Maybe he had led her on a bit? He had comforted her of course, but isn't that what old friends are supposed to do?

Maybe Bria still thought that there was a chance for them. Han wasn't sure if there was or not… he definitely still cared about her. And he had missed her a hell of a lot. Perhaps if they got back together…

Han shook himself. That was not going to happen. Bria would always think that the Rebellion was more important than him and staying around here would only make matters worse. He needed to get away from Yavin and Bria.

He tried to ignore the fact that every time he thought about leaving, guilt struck him as he thought about a certain princesses smiling face.

Still it would make everything a whole lot easier. Making his feelings resolute he left the cabin……. and walked slap bang into Princess Leia.

* * *

"OK …. is it green?" asked Wedge.

"No." said Wes. "And you only have eight questions left, use them wisely."

Rogue Squadron had pretty much given up the idea of being undercover agents. For a start, you can hardly be an undercover agent when everyone in the entire base knows

who you are, and

what you're doing.

Besides it was a nice day and Wes, Hobbie and Wedge had decided that lolling about in the sun was a much more fun way to pass the time than searching for prospective psychopaths.

Hobbie was trying to fix an ionic screwdriver while Wes and Wedge were playing 'Guess the Alien in 20 Questions'. All in all it was shaping up to be quite a nice day… what's that?

A shadow was cast over where the three men were sitting and all three of them looked up to the sky.

"What the hell is that?" asked Wedge.

The rest of the Rebels who had been enjoying a quiet afternoon were alerted to a large ship heading straight for the Rebel Bases landing strip.

"Come on. Lets get to the landing bay" said Wedge. The three of them set off at pace, eager to find out what was going on.

* * *

"Erm… are you OK Princess?" asked Han.

She didn't look OK. In fact she looked shell shocked. What on earth was going on here?

"Han I..:" she began. She couldn't finish though. Blasters are faster than sound.

* * *

**Yeah, you'd better believe it. So what's going on? I don't know… do you?**


	13. Chapter 13

**This is for the people who reviewed. This is for all of you are stressed out at the moment. Bria is for venting…. : )**

**Oh yeah, I don't take things like 'make Bria less evil' very well if it is the WHOLE POINT OF THE STORY. Anyway (read my reviews and see my therapist if you want to know what that was about!)

* * *

**

**Chapter 13**

"You OK?" asked Han of Leia. As soon as he had spotted the gleam of the blaster rifle, he had grabbed Leia and pulled her inside the cabin and slammed the door controls.

Hey, he'd grown up on Correlia. He was used to reacting to guns.

Still, it didn't explain why his ex girlfriend had one trained on the Princess's head just seconds before.

Leia, to be fair, was holding up pretty well. She'd gone pale and was a little shaky, but other than that she was OK. Han wouldn't have minded if she did have a fainting fit because then he would have to catch her and… wrong time to be thinking about that.

Leia looked at Han and started to say what she was saying earlier;

"Han, I got some notification from head office, regarding Bria Tharen"

_Gods, why did she have to sound like a computer the whole time?_ Leia inwardly scorned herself. She wanted to break watch she had to tell Han gently. Instead she sounded like Threepio at his least sympathetic.

Han looked down at her quizzically.

"Well, erm… official documents say that Bria was um, thrown out of the Rebellion a couple of months back."

Great, Leia could address a thousand delegates from hundreds of galaxies but she couldn't put that any softer.

"How do you mean? Why? What she do?" asked Han. He had so many questions bubbling inside of him; he had no idea which one to ask first.

"It seems that she may have….." began Leia. But at that very moment another blaster shot, fired at the cockpit door reverberated around the ship.

It was followed by Bria yelling hoarsely;

"Han, if you don't let me in there I am going to blow the fuel storage to kingdom come!"

Han looked at Leia. Leia looked at Han. Slowly he reached for the door controls, making sure to put himself between the Princess and the cabin door.

Seconds later, Bria Tharen, looking wild eyed and angry entered the small cabin still brandishing the blaster pistol.

"OK, We're going to do this my way" said Bria in a low voice

* * *

Wes Hobby and Wedge reached the unknown ship at the same time as Luke Skywalker. All four of them felt pensive and nervous by the presence of the cruiser. They couldn't work it out, but it seemed as though the ship was a herald of bad news. Even the sky had gone a dull grey and the air seemed more humid and uncomfortable than it had been.

"Does anyone know what's going on?" asked Wedge of Luke.

Luke shook his head.

"None of us anyway. Leia seemed pretty worried about something a few minutes ago. I saw her heading for the Falcon" he said.

Luke wasn't sure how he felt about that. If Leia had a problem, why was she going straight to Han about it? It made him feel uncomfortable and jealous and something else more intangible. A strange sense of acceptance seemed to fill him as he stood there

"Hey look!" said Hobbie, juddering Luke out of his thoughts of Pirates and Princesses.

As they men watched from their slightly elevated view point of the landing bay, they saw a youngish man in a Rebellion issue uniform stride out with a tall, older man.

* * *

This was General Lisle and Commander Ratchet, and neither of them wanted to be there.

As he steeped of the landing ramp, Lisle turned to a Rebellion Official. He didn't bother with protocol.

"Have you found and isolated former Commander Bria Tharen.

The young official ran her hand through her wavy black hair. She was really nervous and hated being put on the spot like this.

"Well, we have had some difficulty finding her exact location…" she trailed off in th face of his disconcerted look.

"Well it is imperative that we find her immediately! She is a highly dangerous, unstable individual." he barked at the woman.

Before he could say anymore, everyone in or around the docking bay was alerted to the sound of a ship's engine starting up. No ship was authorized to leave the bay at that time so it caused some confusion to the techs.

Not that the pilot of the ship could've cared less. She was hell bent on getting off Yavin VI as soon as she could, taking the two hostages with her.

Which was why, just a few seconds later the Millennium Falcon accelerated out of the docking bay and swooped up and out into the open sky.


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey, I'm back. Thank you for the lovely, supportive (and vaguely threatening) reviews. Finally got round to updating (sorry, sorry, sorry). I'm kinda in the middle of GCSEs and I'm revising a lot which means it's hard to update… but I promise updates will be more frequent, starting June 26th (woo, 10 week holiday!)**

**Thanks again and here's Chapter 14 (obviously) Oh yeah and sorry the chapters are short I just find it's easier to build suspense that way. And I also cant think of anything more to write!

* * *

**

**Chapter 14**

Han Solo woke with a start. His head felt oddly heavy and his limbs felt ridiculously painful. He tried to move but found it difficult. He felt cold and it took him a few moments to realize that he was lying on the cargo bay floor, with his arms and legs bound in thick, black tape.

His mind, still fuzzy with sleep, slowly formed as memory which became more vivid and striking and vivid as his senses began to sharpen and he began to wake up.

He remembered Bria, her blaster trained on Leia.

"Get the engines started Han. Or I'll shoot." Bria had said in an unsteady, near hysterical voice. Han had had no idea what was going on, so he remembered trying to reason with her.

"Bria., look, you don't have to do anything. Whatever has happened I'm sure it'll be resolved if you put the…."

He was cut of by Bria screaming "Don't make me kill her Han!"

He remembered looking at the Princess. She looked scared, genuinely scared. He'd been in some scrapes with the Princess, running around the Death Star. But he had never seen a look like this in her eyes. Like… Like she thought Bria was so unstable she actually would shoot.

Han had begun to wonder if this woman, standing in front of them with a blaster in hand, was actually the same Bria he had known. It was like she'd had a personality transplant. If she cared so much about the damn Rebellion, why was she trying to kill one of it's Leaders?

So Han had reached out and flicked the engines on. He eyed Bria as she motioned for him to sit down and guide the ship out of the hangar.

He began to ease the ship out of the hangar and turned to Bria just in time to see her shoot the Princess and then turn the gun on him and say "I'm so sorry about this, honey" and then he heard the bolt and then……

_Stun bolt, _He realized. She'd stunned them both, and flown the ship off Yavin herself. And then she'd tied them up and dumped them here . He suddenly remembered Leia and began to move around, but felt pain flair through his joints. After being bound so tightly for so long, his muscles didn't really feel like moving. He could feel burning in his elbow, shoulder and knee joints but he somehow managed to sit himself up.

He could see that Leia had been dumped next too him and that she had not yet recovered from the effects of the blaster bolt.

Han surveyed the room, grimacing as pain shot down his spine. The cramp in his legs showed no sign of letting up, at least while he was still tied up so tightly. Han noticed, with a rising optimism that Bria must have been in a hurry to get back to the controls of the ship, or to simply lock them in. She hadn't thought to tidy away any of the tools Han kept in the cargo bay for opening crates.

Tools like thick wire cutters that would cut through black tape easily. He began to crawl across the room, while trying to ignore that every movement sent waves of pain through his nervous system. He reached the work bench and pulled himself up and then, with his tied hands, picked up the wire cutters and angled them so he could cut through the bonds that held his hands together.

After a few moments of struggling, he was rewarded with the freedom of his hands. It felt weird to have blood pumping freely around them, but he didn't wait around to enjoy the feeling. He cut the bonds on his legs as well and then he went over to the Princess.

It was funny. She looked like the Princess in the story. Sleeping Beauty.

Han realized that now was not the time to focus on his feelings for Leia which were confusing at best and down right impossible some of the time. She had been trussed up in a similar way, so he cut her bonds as well and checked for injury. She'd hit the floor pretty hard when Bria had shot her.

She seemed unaffected and she began to stir, slowly coming out of the blaster induced coma.

He decided to wait for her to wake up before he formulated a plan in his head. There were two of them and one of Bria. But Bria had the added bonus of being completely crazy on her side. She also had control of his beloved ship…

* * *

Bria had put the ship into hyperspace. She found the waves of streaked light across the cockpit window rather comforting. She found being on board Han's ship again rather comforting. It was just like it was supposed to be… almost.

For one thing, she shouldn't have to shoot Han to get him to go anywhere with her. Also that Princess Leia shouldn't be with them. Oh well, Bria figured she'd have enough time to sort her out.

She grinned as she felt the weight of the blaster on her thigh. She felt sure it wouldn't always be set to stun.

Bria sighed as her thoughts took a different track in her head. Leia knew that part was obvious. And pretty soon they would both be awake and Han would know as well.

Bria shook her head. Han would understand. He'd know that Bria had only done what she'd had too for the good of the Rebellion. What was the cost of a few lives against the victory of the whole the Rebellion?

No, Bria had only acted in the best interests of everyone. She'd only killed those men as they were insubordinate. They didn't care about the Rebellion. They only cared about their pay package and their ration packs. They didn't care about the future of the Rebellion.

That's what Bria told herself when she felt the anxiety rising in her throat. She couldn't believe she'd been given a dishonourable discharge. It made her blood boil. The Rebellion needed her! And she didn't need help. She didn't need any of those psychiatrists.

She needed the Rebellion and she needed Han Solo. And she was prepared to do anything to have them both. Even kill again….

* * *

**Sorry about the wait guys. But when I got handl4eva's review well, it shoved me into action. And it made me laugh! Please review xxxxxxxxyz**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15 **

"What?" asked everyone, simultaneously.

General Lisle massaged his temples and repeated himself.

"Commander Tharen, as was, was given an honourable discharge from the Rebellion six months ago. It seemed as though she had her own, psychological issues to deal with."

"Psychological issues? You're saying that Princess Leia and Han Solo have been kidnapped and are being held by a woman with 'psychological issues'?" asked Wedge.

Lisle nodded.

The General had called the meeting to explain the Tharen situation. He had said that 'only people with a vested interest should be omitted to the meeting'. That was why half the Rebellion base seemed to have crowded into the small meeting room. People were leaning forward, dodging around and even sitting on each other's shoulders to hear what he was saying. It was quite astounding how much the recruits seemed to care.

"Uh….Sir? I don't think we should tell them the other part." said his assistant, Commander Ratchet. Unfortunately, Ratchet had said this while the mic, which the General had spoken into moments before, picked up every word he was saying.

Including the 'Oh sh….. ugar snaps' he uttered a second later when he heard his voice reverberate around the room.

However, this wasn't heard by the fifty cadets including the whole of Rogue Squadron who started asking 'What other part? What?' all at the same time.

The General eyed Ratchet with something like contempt. Then he sighed a little and addressed the troops.

"OK, people, people!" he held a hand up to calm the chattering crowd.

"A few months ago, an investigation was started by Commander Ratchet, here. It was meant to discover the cause of death of some troops on Toprawa, a planet that was, at the time, an Imperial stronghold.

At first, it was assumed these deaths were merely severe battle injuries. However, their wounds were as such that medical staff and, later, Rebellion Investigation Personnel, believed that they may have been caused by deliberate friendly fire.

Later, after interviews with the deceased loved ones it was revealed that all of the troops had one thing in common. They had all clashed, publicly, with Commander Bria Tharen over her leadership.

One of the troops had even planned to organize an internal investigation into Tharen's leadership."

"Well, how come?" asked a voice. The voice came from one, Luke Skywalker. His eyes were shining with anger and fear. But he held his gaze with the General.

Lisle ran a hand over his forehead.

"Some of the troops believed that she took far too many risks with her commands on missions. It's believed that the rate of deaths among the troops she had control over was ten times higher than the average amongst Rebellion Commanders. Even those working in severe war zones." Lisle stopped and paused for breath.

"So, you're saying… that Commander Tharen…. may have murdered the troops who planned to have her actions investigated?" asked Wedge.

It was a horrible and terrifying thought. But it wad the one that was whirling through the minds of all the troops that moment.

Commander Reikken, who stood a little to the left of Lisle, looked like he had aged 20 years in as many minutes.

'_I promised. I promised Bail I'd look after her, and look what happens?'_ he thought to himself.

"But if she's, you know, loopy, how come she was let into the Rebellion in the first place?" asked Wes.

"Well, at the time she was taking medication for her….." Commander Ratchet petered out when he saw the 'Don't- Say -Another-Word,-You -Fool' Look on Lisle face.

"For what?" chorused the troops.

"Ok, fine. It would seem that, at the time, Tharen was taking replacement drugs to help her get over her Spice addiction. It would also seem that Tharen stopped taking these drugs around the time that the deaths of the troops took place." said Lisle.

He really didn't want to admit that. He felt it had been a mistake to put Tharen in charge of troops in the first place.

Not because he didn't believe that addicts could reform themselves and their lives, it was Tharen herself that made him doubt her qualities as a leader. She was just… a bit… desperate for power. And to have and control everything. No matter what.

* * *

**Han and Leia next chapter, promise. Just needed to get some bit's of the plot out the way first. Reviews appreciated.**


End file.
